Member Article

Hull caravan manufacturer enters administration

Static Caravan and holiday lodge manufacturer Normandy Holiday Homes Ltd has been placed in administration, putting 25 jobs under threat.

The Hull-based firm has experienced a slump in export orders and a disruption to its supply chain since 2011, resulting in a 40% drop in sales, and “irreversible financial pressures.”

Joint administrators Andrew Mackenzie and Bob Maxwell of Begbies Traynor were appointed on Friday.

Mr Mackenzie of Begbies Traynor’s Hull office commented: “Normandy Holiday Homes had built turnover to over £5m in 2011, but reduced levels of overseas sales in Europe related to the eurozone crisis, and the failure of other caravan component manufacturers in the region coupled with supplier demands led to problems.

“In addition, slow payment by its UK holiday park and caravan retailer customers which have been unable to sell units this year due to the impact of the dreadful summer, was also a major factor in the failure.

“The business has a skilled workforce, some great products and a strong brand within the market, and we have confidence that we will be able to secure a trade buyer for the business or assets.

“We are actively marketing the business for sale, however the reality of the situation is that further redundancies are inevitable as the business simply can’t pay the wages of the staff at present.

“Our focus now is to recover as much of the creditors’ funds as we can, as well as ensuring as many of the workforce as possible remain employed.”

The firm operates from 40,000 sq ft of freehold and leasehold manufacturing sites in Bontoft Avenue in Hull. 19 staff were made redundant last week.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .